The Book of Worship
\nJohn 1:29 the L
amb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
\n1 Peter 1:16 Be hol
y\, for I am holy!
The book of Leviticus speaks of the finished wo rk of Jesus Christ\, the Messiah\, on the cross\, which secures our positi onal and practical holiness. Leviticus anticipates the life and death of J esus. The sacrifices\, festivals\, rituals\, and laws foreshadow God's red emptive plan. Jesus becomes the way to remove the guilt and penalty for si n through His substitutionary death on the cross. His death provides the f inal atonement for all sin.
\n2 Corinthians 5:21 God made the one wh o did not know sin to be sin for us so that God's righteousness would be p roduced in us.
\nThe message of Leviticus directs us to the way by w hich God restores lost men to Himself. Both the redemptive activity of God and the response of appropriation due from man are summed up in the key v erse\, \"Ye shall be holy unto me: for I the Lord am holy\, and have sever ed you from other people\; that you should be mine (20:26)
\nTo acco mplish salvation and restore humanity to its Maker\, a means of access to God must be provided. The first half of Leviticus (chapters 1-16) presents a series of religious actions that picture the way by which God redeems t he lost\, separating them from their sin and its consequences. The various sacrifices (chs 1-7) were anticipations of the death of Christ on Calvary \, where the Sinless One suffered the wrath of God in our place\, that we might be ransomed from our guilt.
\n2 Cor 5:21 god made the one who
did not know sin to be sin for us so that God's righteousness would be pro
duced in us.
\nMark 10:45 Even the Son of Man did not come to be serv
ed\, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many people.
The Levitical priests (chs. 8-10) then foreshadowed Christ's faithful se rvice in making reconciliation for the sins of the people (Heb 2:17). The laws of cleanness (chs 11-15) were perpetual reminders of the repentance a nd separation from impurity that must characterize the redeemed.
\nL uke 13:5 Repent lest ye likewise perish.
\nWhile the climactic Day o f Atonement service (Lev 16) proclaimed God's forgiveness to those who hum bled themselves in faithful commitment to Christ\, who would yet provide a ccess to heaven itself.
\nHeb 9:24 For the Messiah did not go into a sanctuary made by human hands that is merely a copy of the true one\, but into heaven itself\, to appear now in God's presence on our behalf.
\nSalvation is not only a separation from the wrong\; it involves a posit ive union with what is right. So\, the second half of Leviticus (chapters 17-27) presents a series of practical standards to which men are to confor m in holy living. These include expressions of devotion in matters of cere mony (ch. 17) and worship (233-25)\, but they center on matters of daily c onduct (18-22). Christ himself summed up the divine law (Matt 22:37-40 by speaking of a wholehearted love for God and by quoting from this section o f Leviticus\, \"Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself\" (19:18)
\nFurther Study\;
\nRead the book of Leviticus
\nLook for symbols
and signposts of Jesus.
\nRead Hebrews\, especially chapter 10\, to
help you understand Leviticus.